Reform UK's candidate in the Gorton and Denton byelection, Matt Goodwin, has been accused of endorsing an 'alt-right fantasy' after unearthed YouTube footage showed him calling for 'young girls and women' to be given a 'biological reality' check regarding childbearing. In a clip from November 2024, Goodwin stated that 'many women in Britain are having children much too late in life' and argued they should be encouraged to have children earlier.
The comments, first reported by The Independent, sparked a furious backlash. Sarah Owen, chair of the Commons women and equalities committee, described them as 'deeply offensive', saying they appeared to blame women for the declining birthrate. Natalie Fleet, Labour MP for Bolsover, who became pregnant as a 15-year-old, addressed Goodwin on social media, asking if he wanted a 'Handmaid's Tale future'—a reference to Margaret Atwood's dystopian novel.
In a separate podcast with Jordan Peterson from February 2025, Goodwin agreed with Peterson's claim that universities are full of 'childless women' contributing to 'politically correct authoritarianism'. A Reform spokesperson defended the discussion, stating they were referencing peer-reviewed academic studies on psychological differences between men and women.
Further controversy emerged from previous remarks by Goodwin in 2023 suggesting the government should remove personal income tax for women with two or more children. The party denied he called for taxing childless women more, instead calling for a 'grown-up, mature debate' on supporting British families.
Hannah Spencer, the Green party candidate in Gorton and Denton, criticised Goodwin for focusing on divisive solutions rather than addressing real problems like the cost of living. Penny East, chief executive of the Fawcett Society, called the idea of telling young girls they have a moral obligation to have children earlier 'dystopian and deeply sexist'.
